Trimley St Mary, #1 on this list · Photo: Oxymoron · CC BY-SA 2.0

Suffolk rankings · Outdoors

Best towns for the outdoors in Suffolk

Trimley St Mary ranks first on outdoors among Suffolk’s 34 towns of 2,500+; 9 of the 34 grade A− or better against UK towns.

The Outdoors Grade, a character grade (not part of the overall): green space per resident, parks within 400 m, National Park or National Landscape within 5 km, footpaths and the coast. The rank across England and Wales sits beside each letter. How grades work

Trimley St Mary

3,736 people

A⁺

Better than almost every UK town·#15 of 2,156 in England and Wales

Kesgrave

14,947 people

Better than 95% of UK towns·#96 of 2,156 in England and Wales

Leiston

5,919 people

Better than 90% of UK towns·#195 of 2,156 in England and Wales

All 34 towns, ranked

Outdoors grade, best first; ranks are the county ranks on each town’s page (T = tied). Military garrison towns and university campuses keep their grades but aren’t ranked. Each rank across England and Wales links to the national list.

Every town in Suffolk →

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34 towns.

#TownGrade · UK rankCompared with UK towns

1Trimley St Mary3,736 peopleA⁺#15 of 2,156 nationallybetter than almost every UK town

2Kesgrave14,947 peopleA#96 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 95% of UK towns

3Leiston5,919 peopleA#195 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 90% of UK towns

4Beccles9,807 peopleA#251 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 88% of UK towns

5Martlesham Heath2,730 peopleA⁻#389 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 83% of UK towns

6Felixstowe24,218 peopleA⁻#394 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 83% of UK towns

7Lowestoft71,308 peopleA⁻#424 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 82% of UK towns

8Needham Market5,055 peopleA⁻#485 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 79% of UK towns

9Ipswich151,566 peopleA⁻#581 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 75% of UK towns

10Saxmundham4,778 peopleB⁺#594 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 75% of UK towns

11Long Melford3,895 peopleB⁺#664 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 72% of UK towns

12Haverhill26,704 peopleB⁺#686 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 71% of UK towns

13Woodbridge10,146 peopleB⁺#732 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 69% of UK towns

14Hadleigh8,638 peopleB⁺#739 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 69% of UK towns

15Elmswell4,446 peopleB#880 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 63% of UK towns

16Framlingham3,831 peopleB#990 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 59% of UK towns

17Sudbury23,922 peopleB#1,051 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 56% of UK towns

18Bury St Edmunds41,279 peopleB⁻#1,164 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 51% of UK towns

19Mildenhall9,684 peopleB⁻#1,172 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 51% of UK towns

20Worlingham3,618 peopleB⁻#1,193 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 50% of UK towns

21Kessingland4,242 peopleC⁺#1,319 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 44% of UK towns

22Newmarket18,857 peopleC⁺#1,457 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 38% of UK towns

23Capel St Mary2,992 peopleC⁺#1,472 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 37% of UK towns

24Bungay5,012 peopleC#1,651 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 28% of UK towns

25Red Lodge5,771 peopleC#1,705 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 26% of UK towns

26Beck Row4,129 peopleC#1,707 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 26% of UK towns

27Glemsford3,693 peopleC⁻#1,750 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 24% of UK towns

28Claydon3,140 peopleC⁻#1,773 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 23% of UK towns

29Stowmarket21,537 peopleC⁻#1,845 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 19% of UK towns

30Rendlesham3,185 peopleC⁻#1,900 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 16% of UK towns

31Halesworth4,924 peopleC⁻#1,914 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 16% of UK towns

32Brandon9,218 peopleD#2,003 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 11% of UK towns

33Lakenheath4,567 peopleD#2,052 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 7% of UK towns

34Thurston3,009 peopleD#2,072 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 6% of UK towns

Not ranked

Not on this list

1 military garrison town or university campus keeps its grade but isn’t ranked: most residents serve in the forces or are students.

Little Eriswell 4,120 people. Garrison town.

Quick answers

Questions people ask

Which town in Suffolk is best for the outdoors?

Trimley St Mary ranks first on outdoors among 34 towns, with an A+: better than almost every UK town. Kesgrave and Leiston follow.

How are these towns ranked?

The Outdoors Grade, a character grade (not part of the overall): green space per resident, parks within 400 m, National Park or National Landscape within 5 km, footpaths and the coast. The letter and rank are the same as on each town’s page. How grades work.

Why isn’t my town on this list?

Garrison towns and university campuses aren’t ranked, and towns without the figures this grade needs are counted above. The list covers Suffolk’s towns of 2,500+ with the figure. Smaller places show it on their own pages; every town in Suffolk is on the county page.

Go deeper

More Suffolk lists

Every list ranks the same 2,500+ towns, so a town’s rank means the same thing on each.

All Suffolk rankings →

Best places to live34 towns · #1 Kesgrave Best small towns24 towns · #1 Capel St Mary Most affordable towns34 towns · #1 Kessingland Safest towns34 towns · #1 Worlingham Towns with the best schools34 towns · #1 Glemsford Healthiest towns34 towns · #1 Capel St Mary Best towns for jobs & income34 towns · #1 Martlesham Heath Most walkable towns34 towns · #1 Bury St Edmunds Towns with the lowest flood risk34 towns · #1 Capel St Mary and 6 more Most historic towns34 towns · #1 Long Melford Towns with the most civic life34 towns · #1 Framlingham Towns with the highest household incomes35 towns · #1 ThurstonDescribed, no letters Towns with the lowest council tax35 towns · #1 WorlinghamDescribed, no letters Towns with the mildest winters35 towns · #1 Trimley St MaryDescribed, no letters Towns with the warmest summers35 towns · #1 Beck RowDescribed, no letters Towns with the coolest summers35 towns · #1 KessinglandDescribed, no letters Towns with the fewest frosts35 towns · #1 Trimley St MaryDescribed, no letters Driest towns35 towns · #1 FelixstoweDescribed, no letters Wettest towns35 towns · #1 SaxmundhamDescribed, no letters

Sources: TownRatings grades: our own summary of the data, ranked against UK towns only. All under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.